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Thursday, September 24, 2009

Now Open: The Butterbean Quarantine!

As most of you know, a big chunk of the money you generously donated to the IBKC fundraiser for our Humane Society went towards the build-out of two cat quarantine rooms. Because of the donations, we officially sponsored one of the rooms, and it has been dubbed "The Butterbean Quarantine".

Just a weeks back, they officially opened the doors. Today I stopped by to see the fully functioning rooms in person, and snap a few pictures to share with you. Shana was there today to give me the full tour.

The rooms are lovely. The walls are painted a pale, watery blue and natural light floods in through the skylights. The rooms feel peaceful and calm. So do the resident cats.

There are 32 cages total in the two rooms. Some are for single cats, others are large enough to house pairs or a family.

The Butterbean Quarantine will be used to hold the healthy owner-surrender cats while they wait for a spot to open up for them at one the satellite adoption stations at PetSmart, Petco or Metropolian Vet. This frees up more space in the main cattery and will keep the owner-surrender cats healthy by keeping them separate from the strays.

Having these rooms up and running is going to make such a HUGE difference at the HS.

So, thank you once again for your amazing support. Just look what you did and think of all the lives you are saving.

38 comments:

This is so cool! And it became a reality so fast! I'm so proud of the IBKC and all the wonderful donors who made this happen, and it makes me feel good to have been even a tiny part of it. I love that the Butterbean Quarantine name is official! :)

Laurie, your words are so true ~ Butterbean Quarantine is lovely and peaceful. It offers displaced cats a home to relax and feel safe, and to know that they're in good hands before moving onto their new forever homes.

It was a pleasure to show you around today. On behalf of Screech, Gussy and all the Butterbean Quarantine kitties big and small, thanks to the entire IBKC community for making it a reality.

I'm so glad that the donations made it possible to improve the lives of the owner surrenders. It's so sad to think of what's happened to their lives, so if they have a place to call their own it helps a little.

The room is wonderful, of course, but who could surrender those two beautiful kitties? I know that surrenders aren't always really voluntary -- sometimes the owner's life changed in a way that doesn't permit cats -- and I think that's even sadder....

Butterbean Quarantine ... a perfect name for a perfect "waiting until" spot that's safe and filled with love. Screech, if I lived a few thousand miles nearer, I'd be in my car heading to the "BQ" room to bring you home with me. Gray tabbies are the absolute best!

Great picture of Butterbean for the plaque. I hope it brings a bit of sunshine for the tragic "owner-surrendered" cats. That's the saddest thing of all. Kitties who once had loving homes being surrendered for any one of a variety of reasons, most of which aren't their fault. I send my hopes out to them they'll get a second chance. My second-chance kitties have been a joy in my household.

Wubbie = stuffed lovies for kitties. Sue finds wonderful deals at local thrift stores ~ often 25 or 50 cents for a stuffed animal in really good condition. They're all washed and dried before being presented to the kitties.

We found that most shelter kitties love the company of a soft wubbie, especially when recovering from surgery. Kitties who find a particular attachment to them can take their wubbies home with them. :)

I encourage everyone to drop by your local shelter or rescue agency and offer a bundle of wubbies. Remove any dangers like googly eyes or ribbons that might harm a kitty ~ they're not always supervised in their cages.

So look again at Screech's photo, you'll see her soft wubbie keeping her safe and warm. I have a feeling that wubbie will be going home with her.

Thanks, Shana, for explaining Wubbies - I have two large boxes of beanie babies that I can drop by right away - and then will be on the prowl at thift stores for more toys - East Coast kitties need Wubbies, too!!!

We're always on the hunt for good people in the Seattle or Tacoma area to adopt our fosters kittens. If you are thinking about adding a kitten or two to your life, drop us a line and tell us a little bit about yourself. Click here to email the IBKC !